


A Crack in the Night Sky

by quickwest



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-04
Updated: 2016-07-04
Packaged: 2018-07-20 02:58:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,530
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7387807
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/quickwest/pseuds/quickwest
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Iris loves fireworks</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Crack in the Night Sky

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Fourth of July to those who celebrate!

Iris was looking up at the black, night sky. The stars barely shone out in contrast to the cracking of the fireworks. She loved the fireworks ever since she was a little girl, and her dad would prop her up on his shoulders. In amazement, she’d watch the bursts of color; the standard red, white, and blue, and flashes of gold, green, pink and purple would make an appearance.

This Fourth of July was different than the rest, but every year brought something new. There were the ones that she could vaguely remember with both her parents; they were a happy couple. In all their photos, Francine was a beautiful woman whose smile was infectious. Iris could see that whenever someone was smiling in a photograph, her mother would be there making grand hand gestures or funny faces. 

Iris would make up the stories that her mom was telling since her dad would never remember what was going on, and she had no way to figure it out. She would tell herself that her mom was an explorer and would talk about her expeditions or she was an astronaut and she would tell stories about the moon, and shockingly enough, it wasn’t made of cheese. Then she was told that her mother passed away, and within five years, their holiday changed.

Barry’s first Fourth after his mom died was tough, but Iris was determined for him to have a good time. Joe was having his annual barbecue which was weird for Barry because the year before that, he had showed up with his parents. Iris knew to expect the staring and whispering from the guests. And with one look at Barry, she knew that it made him uncomfortable. He looked pale, scared, and lost. So he faked a stomach ache and went upstairs.

When it was time for the fireworks, Iris didn’t stay with her dad this time. Instead she went to Barry’s room. She felt sad for him because she knew the feeling of the holidays being different, of waking up on those days and feeling like a foreigner but still having to plaster a smile on and pretend to be happy.

“Hey,” Barry said. He was sitting up on his bed disassembling a toy car only to put it back together later.

“Hey,” she replied, wanting to seem nonchalant. “Do you want to go outside? We can watch the fireworks.”

He looked at her and for a second, Barry seemed hopeful; his eyes widened up and twinkled, but then they went dull and kind of sad.

“No thanks,” he replied. Iris held back her disappointment, but then walked to the window where she could see outside perfectly and sat on the ledge.

An explosion of green light sparkled the sky, grabbing Barry’s attention. Slowly, he got off his bed and sat next to her. Iris just smiled without saying anything. It was mostly quiet after that except for their ‘oohs’ and ‘ahhs’ over the spectacle. And even though she spent it inside, Iris wouldn’t have asked for another way to spend the night.

It was a stark contrast to the Fourth that she celebrated a year ago. It had been a couple months since Eddie died, and she wasn’t in the mood to celebrate. There was a gaping hole in her heart for Eddie who decided to be some type of martyr to stop Eobard Thawne.

Joe called her and tried to convince her come over for the celebration, but she refused profusely. When he offered to go to her place instead, Iris felt so much pity for herself, but decided not to let her dad hear it. So instead she perked up.

“It’s okay, dad, really. I’ve got to be at work first thing in the morning, so I think it would be best to stay in.” 

Joe sighed and said okay because his heart broke for Iris, but she kept telling him that she was handling it although it was a lie. Every day she felt more and more hollow. It didn’t help either that Barry avoided her after the singularity because the guilt of the two lives lost that day weighed on him, and he wasn’t sure how to forgive himself.

When nighttime hit, Iris heard the same boom and pops from outside. The fireworks went off in sessions where for long periods there would be pop after pop of explosion as the city mustered up the courage to celebrate while it was still rebuilding from the damage that the singularity caused. Then there was silence as they got ready for the next round of light.

Iris watched from the couch with a blanket tucked under her chin and a tub of ice cream, her knees were hugged to her chest. The fireworks seemed blurry this time instead of being clear radiant, little jewels. She didn’t know why until she felt a drop on her hand and realized that her tears were affecting her ability to see it clearly. 

She wiped them with the back of her hand, begging herself to stop crying. Se needed a distraction of sorts to make it better because she didn’t want to spend another night crying herself to sleep. Her phone was on the coffee table when she grabbed it. Without even thinking, she called the first person she could think of.

“Hey,” Barry said after answering on the third ring.

“Hey,” Iris greeted, mustering up a happier voice. “Happy Independence Day.”

Iris could hear Barry’s smile on the other end of the phone because of that small sigh that always followed it.

“You too,” he replied with a light laugh. It was quiet for a second then Iris asked:

“What are you up to?”

“Nothing really, just at home in my room,” he sighed, “I didn’t really feel like celebrating.”

“Me neither,” Iris said, “so instead I’m watching the city’s show inside my apartment.”

“How’s that?” Barry asked. In the background, she could hear thumping on the wall in a specific rhythm, like Barry was throwing a tennis ball against the ceiling then catching it.

“It’s great, it–” she started, but just then a boom filled the sky and shook the ground making it feel like there was a mini earthquake beneath her. Then there was a rainbow of color and multiple bursts went off at once creating a beautiful demonstration that dazzled her heart the way they always had.

“Oh my gosh, you have to see this!” Iris urged, “Go look out your window.”

She scrambled off the couch, throwing her blanket to the side and ran over to watch the rest of the sparklers. She could hear the creaking of the old wooden floor beneath his feet when he went to the window.

While doing so he muttered, “It’s the same thing every year, how do you always get so excited about this?”

But then silence on the other end followed when there was another boom of color and the sweet sizzle that followed.

“Whoa,” was all Barry could say.

And they continued to watch together until it was time to sleep.

Now the backyard of her childhood home was full of noise. Joe and Cisco drank beer while igniting the fireworks. Wally was with them, sipping on a coke. Iris saw them talking and laughing. Cisco said something that she couldn’t make out, but it sent her dad and brother into hysterics.

Caitlin sat there on a patio chair, trying to be okay. She clutched onto a soda can while alternating between running circles around the lid and tapping her nail on the aluminum can. Iris’s heart went out to her because of those sad eyes that tried to be happy whenever someone looked at her. She was polite and engaged in the conversation when necessary, but Iris could see that she was hurting.

 _It’ll be okay,_ she thought.

Just then the next round of sparklers dazzled the sky, exciting her and those around her. When the red crackle illuminated the atmosphere, she felt Barry’s arms lock around her waist after speeding in. She couldn’t help the smile that escaped her when he held her close, her back pressing into his chest and his chin rested on top of her head.

“You finally made it,” Iris said, her hand absentmindedly resting on one of the arms around her.

“I did,” Barry replied.

Iris turned her head to meet his happy gaze. Then she was anything but surprised that his lips found hers sneaking a short kiss that made a lasting impression when his mouth closed over hers making her forget the whole world around her. But they both were uncomfortable by exaggerated displays of affection, especially at a gathering that with only friends and family.

They pulled away, and Iris rested her head back on him. To say that she was content was an understatement. The year they had wasn’t an easy one with Zoom and the death of Barry’s father, but this made up for that.

His lips pressed onto the top of her head and his arms tightened around her, promising to never let go.

“I wouldn’t miss this for anything,” Barry replied.


End file.
